(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to digital signal processors and more particularly to a floating point array signal processing unit (FASP).
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Continually and rapidly improving technology in the field of digital signal processors (DSP) has both positive and negative ramifications. In the positive sense, improved DSP technology means that faster and more efficient systems utilizing DSP technology will be developed. However, the negative fallout is that currently existing systems that utilize DSP technology are often retired into early obsolescence. This is especially true for systems that were designed using prior art DSP techniques. In such cases, the entire system may be forced into early obsolescence due to the shortcomings of prior art DSP technology relative to currently available technology.
A representative example of the aforementioned scenario may be found in U.S. Naval weapons technology and in the computers utilized on U.S. Naval submarines and surface ships. While higher levels of performance are always desired in such systems, the latency between conception and entry of major Navy weapons and platforms into the fleet can be as long as twenty years. In contrast, the technologies used in a signal processor typically have life cycles that are as short as three years. This leads to two problems: 1) the weapon (or platform processor) is prohibitively expensive by the time the production cycle starts, and 2) the desired performance can be many times more than what was envisioned during the conceptual system design. Thus, the Navy typically must buy small quantities of components that are often not commercially available thereby adding to production time and expense. Furthermore, methods of processing using DSP's are almost as varied as their applications. For example, processing may be performed serially (pipelined), in parallel or in combinations thereof. Traditionally, this has necessitated designing DSP's that function according to only one of these methods.